Chapter 9 #2
“Fiancé!” I quickly interject, the word slipping out too fast for me to stop it. It’s a safe assumption that he was about to say “friend”, but I don’t need a friend right now. Not if I want to convince Patricia that I have the means and stability to take care of Georgie.
“Fiancé,” Anderson repeats, stretching out the word like he’s never heard it before, taking his hand back from Patricia and looking at me. There’s a smile on his face, but it’s not the care-free one I’m used to. It’s strained and forced, and I hate it.
“How exciting!” Patricia picks up her pen and jots down something on her legal pad.
“I guess that answers my question from right before we heard the knock on the door,” she offers, and I feel Georgie’s eyes burning a hole in the side of my head, thankful she’s keeping her surprise to herself.
“Then, I guess it’s a good thing he stopped by. ”
Patricia must see the confusion on my face—or all of our faces at this point—so she clarifies, “When someone steps into a permanent caregiver role, CPS looks at the whole household, not just the individual.” She gestures to me.
“Anyone you are in a committed relationship with—especially someone who will eventually live with her—would be part of the approval process, too, because the goal is to understand the full environment the child will be growing up in.”
The more she talks, the more I know that Anderson is vital in making sure Georgie stays with me.
I haven’t quite thought past what happens once Patricia leaves, but right now I need to make sure this woman reports back that I am a viable option for Georgie, especially while she conducts her investigation into my mom.
I grab Anderson’s hand on my leg and hold it tightly in mine.
“Anderson and I were planning on moving into his house with the marriage, and there’s tons of room for Georgie," I explain, using my knowledge of what his house looks like in the middle of the night to paint the picture for Patricia. “He lives in a nice, quiet, safe neighborhood that’s only fifteen minutes from Georgie’s school.
There’s a big backyard and a park nearby.
A huge living room for movie nights and a beautiful kitchen with a dining room that I can already see would be the perfect place for us to help Georgie with her homework every night before dinner. ”
Patricia nods. “That sounds absolutely wonderful.” She writes a few more notes down just before her gaze goes to Anderson. “What do you do for work, Anderson?”
“I’m a firefighter,” he answers. “I work twenty-four-hour shifts and then have forty-eight hours off. It’s consistent, offers great insurance, and the station is only ten minutes from my house.”
My lips part in surprise at the way he does his part in convincing Patricia that Georgie would be taken care of with us—me.
I watch Patrica consider all of this, and I can’t tell if she likes his answer or not.
Before panic can settle in, Anderson adds, “And the crew is filled with other mothers, fathers, and caregivers, so we all help each other out with getting shifts covered whenever someone needs it.”
Patricia’s lips curve into a soft smile. “That’s great to hear.” She jots something down. “Stable, steady income, benefits,” she murmurs, more to herself than to any of us, as she nods her head.
“And, he’s an amazing support system for me,” I add, remembering how Patricia was nervous about how my lack of nearby family would look to CPS. I don’t know if Anderson has family nearby or if he’s even close with them, but hopefully being engaged proves to CPS that I’m not doing this all alone.
Patricia makes a few more notes on her legal pad before turning to Georgie. “How are you feeling about all of this, Georgina? I know it can’t be easy, but it sounds like your sister and her fiancé will be able to give you everything you need. Is that something you would want?
Georgie looks at me, her eyes moving to Anderson, and then back to me before turning to Patricia. She nods her head. “Yes, it is.”
Her lips aren’t exactly a smile, but they aren’t turned down like how they’ve been for most of the night—I’m taking that as a win.
She hasn’t said much tonight, but I don’t blame her.
I just hope she knows she does have a say in all of this—I don’t want her suffering in silence all over again, like she did with my mom.
We just have to get through this meeting with Patricia, have her report to CPS that I have the stability that Georgie needs, and then the two of us can figure out where we go from here.
I’m sure all of this will be enough to convince them that I’m fit to be Georgie’s guardian. And then, once it’s all said and done, I’ll thank Anderson for playing his part so well tonight, and we can go our separate ways.
It’s not like we’ll actually have to get married.
Lying to Patricia and CPS isn’t ideal, but neither is Georgie going back to my mom or into the system.
This is the only way.
“I think I have all I need for today,” Patricia says, clicking her pen closed and grabbing her briefcase from the floor. “I’ll be in touch after my meeting with your mother tomorrow morning.”
Georgie, Anderson, and I all stand as she does.
“Oh, one more thing,” she says as she grabs her coat off the back of the chair, swinging it behind her as she sticks her arm through one of the sleeves.
“Of course,” I say, eager for her to leave, yet dreading it at the same time.
“When do you two plan on getting married?”
Anderson and I look at each other, both of us uncertain as to what the correct thing to say is.
“We’re not entirely sure yet,” I settle on. My anxiety begins rising, and I feel the urge to count something—anything.
“Enjoying being engaged right now,” Anderson adds, looping an arm around my waist and pulling me against him.
It should be awkward, but it isn’t.
It shouldn’t distract me from where my mind just was, but it does.
I don’t let myself sit with that thought—either thought—for long.
Patricia hums, but the sound makes me uneasy.
“Is that okay?” I can’t help but ask.
“That’s fine,” she says with a wave of her hand, but she doesn’t sound convinced. “But, we will most likely need some documentation for the adoption—if that’s the route you decide on.”
“It is,” I quickly say.
Patricia nods. “Then, like I said, we’ll need some documentation to ensure stability as Georgina’s legal guardian.”
“What type of documentation?” Anderson asks. His grip on my hip tightens, and I don’t think it was voluntary.
“Well, we’ll want to make sure that we have grounds to ensure that Gerogie’s well-being will be taken care of. And, if we’re going based on what we discussed tonight,” she pauses for a moment as she grabs her gloves from the pocket of her jacket.
The three of us wait with bated breath, and even though I think I know what she’s about to say, the words are like a punch to the stomach.
“We’ll need your marriage certificate.”
It’s like all the air is sucked from the room, and the ground is pulled from beneath me, all in a matter of seconds.
They’ll need us to show that this isn’t all just words—CPS needs proof.
And I planted all these seeds so deep that I don’t know if I can dig them back up carefully enough to salvage them.
I’m fucked.